KABUL – Opium production in Afghanistan has continued to decline, while the manufacture and trafficking of synthetic drugs is rapidly increasing, according to a new report released by the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) on Thursday.
The report shows that poppy cultivation in Afghanistan dropped by 20% in 2025 compared with the previous year, falling to an estimated 10,200 hectares. In 2024, cultivation stood at 12,600 hectares, while before the Taliban’s 2022 drug ban, it had reached 232,000 hectares nationwide.
Opium production also fell sharply. In 2025, Afghanistan produced 296 tonnes of opium, a 32% decrease from 2024 levels.
Farmer incomes have been hit hard. According to the UN, revenue from opium sales fell from $260 million in 2024 to $134 million in 2025, a 46% drop. Many farmers have shifted to growing legumes and other crops, while more than 40% of the country’s farmland has been left barren due to worsening drought and climate impacts.
The return of nearly four million Afghans from neighboring countries and shrinking humanitarian aid could, however, push farmers back toward opium cultivation, the report warns.
“Afghanistan’s path to overcoming illicit crop cultivation requires coordinated, long-term investments, including through international partnerships,” said Oliver Stolpe, UNODC Regional Representative for Afghanistan, Central Asia, Iran, and Pakistan (ROCA).
“It is about placing equal emphasis on empowering Afghan farmers through alternative income-generating activities, eradicating illicit crops and countering drug trafficking, while reducing demand through enhanced prevention and treatment.”
The price of dry opium has also plummeted by 27% this year, falling to $570 per kilogram, down from $780 in 2024. The UN says the decline suggests broader changes in regional drug markets, including the possible emergence of opium production elsewhere.
While opium production has dropped, the UN reports a significant surge in the manufacturing and trafficking of synthetic drugs – especially methamphetamine. Seizures of synthetic drugs in Afghanistan and neighboring countries increased by 50% between late 2023 and the end of 2024.
UNODC notes that synthetic drugs are easier to produce, harder to detect, and less vulnerable to climate conditions, making them an increasingly lucrative trade for organized criminal groups.
The agency warns that drug-control efforts in Afghanistan must expand beyond opiates and include monitoring and interception of synthetic substances.
